Hebrews 12:12-17

¹² Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, ¹³ and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed. ¹⁴ Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: ¹⁵ looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; ¹⁶ lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. ¹⁷ For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.

Commentary

Vs. 12-13 ¹² Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, ¹³ and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed. 

In light of God's chastening of us we are to strengthen those areas of our persons and lives that we are weakest in. And so turning from ones own sin and or wrong ideas and attitudes is always better than being unwilling to change, or even be changed (consider Psalm 38:3-5). Therefore make the positive changes in your life that God desires to see in you, changes which are in accord with God's Word, for this will bring the healing and health to you, and to all that you touch with your new life (consider Prov 3:7-8; 4:20-22; James 4:7-10; Rev. 3:19). 

Vs. 14 "Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord" 

Having received peace with God the moment we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are now to be His ambassadors of peace and good will to one and to all (consider Luke 2:14; Cor. 3:5-6; 5:18-21). For that is part and parcel of pursuing peace with all people, extending the love and the grace of God and thus the salvation of God to one and to all (John 3:16). Therefore as much as depends on us, let us all strive to peaceably with all people (consider Rom 12:18-21; 1 Thess. 5:15). Now linked with pursuing peace with all people is also pursuing holiness, for holiness is in accord with Jesus Christ and our new nature as His born-again children of God. Therefore holiness does not commit sexual immorality (1 Cor 6:18-20; 1 Thess 4:3-8 etc.), rather holiness is found in the reverence of God (Lev. 10:3) with obedience to His Word (2 Tim 2:22). And so nothing is more indicative of the Life, Spirit, and Presence of the Lord Jesus Christ than the pursuit of peace and holiness with one and with all. Now the pursuit of holiness (like discipleship) though often entailing self denial (Luke 9:23) for holy pursuits like prayer and fasting (1 Cor. 7:5-6) is not found in self imposed exile, asceticism, or obeying the doctrines and commandments of men (Matt. 15:1-9; Col. 2:20-22). For holiness does not take away from the quality of ones life, and ones relationship with God and others (as legalism does), rather holiness enriches it, by removing sin, Satan, and his influence over ones person and life, so that the one who purifies their life in accord with Christ can now draw near to God (James 4:8-10). For the Lord Jesus Christ comes to bring us life, and bring it more abundantly, not enslave us to doctrines and commandments of men. While Satan only comes to kill, steal, and destroy (see John 10:10). And not just through sin, which is obvious, but also and most hideous through his own he always seeks to infiltrate and distort the truth. And thus through lusts, through licentiousness, through the false and misleading doctrines and commandments of men, he takes captive well meaning men and women who are ignorant of these things (consider Rom 6:16; 2 Cor 11:13-15; Gal 1:8-9; 2 Peter 2:18-22 etc.). Therefore the pursuit of holiness is pursuing what God in Christ has sanctified us all to be as His new creations in Christ; who have been freed from sin, Satan, and death so that we can now do and enjoy all the glorious liberties of the children of God. For obeying the commandments of men are of no value against the sinful lusts of the flesh, but in the end only heighten them (consider 1 Cor 15:56).
Finally in this pursuit of holiness we are not to be friends of this world, and thus we must not embrace it's degenerating morals and "values" (James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17). And so purifying ones own person and life in accord with the Word of God (1 Cor 5:9-13; 2 Cor 6:14-7:1; Rev 18:3-4) not only heightens ones own prosperity and peace in this life, but also makes one a catalyst for the same (Eph. 5:1-7, 8-14, 15-21, vs. 11; 2 Tim. 2:20-21; 3 John 2). 

Vs. 15-17 ¹⁵ looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; ¹⁶ lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. ¹⁷ For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.

Now it falls not just on us, but specifically upon the church leaders to be looking carefully over the whole congregation "...lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled." For there are always those who will have the saving knowledge of God through the Gospel but will have never personally received the Lord Jesus Christ for themselves, and thus been born again by the Holy Spirit, and thus not been transformed by regenerating work of Him, which He works in everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ. And so such individuals who seek to live and experience the Christian life and God's promises and Spiritual experiences by their own strength and abilities (and thus not by first repenting and believing in the Gospel ,and thus coming to the Lord Jesus Christ in faith, without reservations or expectations) can become disillusioned by their own efforts and expectations, in seeking to have and experience all that Christ Promises everyone who believes in Him through the Gospel. For it is only by the grace of God that He brings us to Spirit life and unites us with Christ as His redeemed and eternally secure and forgiven people. And so sadly when someone tries to enter the Kingdom of heaven by some other means other than by the grace of God, which is only given to us by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone, and thus they find that they cannot enter by striving to do so by some other means, sadly instead of repenting of their own self-will or works and turning to Christ and trusting Him alone for their salvation, they can become antagonistic towards Him. And when that happens, when someone who began a journey of faith, turns away from the faith in their hearts, they can unwittingly become a person by which Satan now sows his own works and agenda's through them. Thus the root of bitterness is referring to the individual who though starting out with a profession of faith In Christ, falls short of the grace of God and apostates from the faith. And having done so they will have degenerating effects on the lives and especially the faith of those around them. For such individuals will not only begin to call into question the Authenticity and Authority of God's Word, but as they become more emboldened in their unbelief and rejection of the Lord, they will start living lives and justifying practices that are utterly hostile to both Him and it. And so we must all be weary of such individuals when we become aware of them. In the Book of Revelations there is mentioned a woman referred to as "Jezebel"; an O.T. reference to the godless wife of king Ahab who not only stirred him up to do all kinds of evil (1 Kings 21:25), but having killed the prophets of the Lord (1 Kings 18:4) she by her harlotry's then went on to lead the nation of Israel astray from the Lord. And so this woman in the church of Thyatira being called by the Word of the Lord "Jezebel" is clearly indicating that she is "a root of bitterness" amongst them, by which many were becoming defiled. And yet this woman was calling herself a prophetess! And so whether by the complacency or compliance of the church leaders in that congregation she was being allowed to teach and seduce the people of God into committing sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols! (see Rev. 2:18-29). Therefore the root of bitterness, the apostate individual whose heart turns away from the Lord is again utterly toxic to any congregations well being. Now that reality is also made clear in verse 16 where the example of Esau is used to describe the apostate. For Esau though the firstborn for a single morsel of food went on to sell his own birthright, (a warning for us all to heed because there are people who have started out well in the faith and yet for a "single morsel of food"; i.e. maybe an adulteress affair, or maybe for the love of money etc. have likewise sold their own birthrights!) and having done so Esau would then go on to take wives for himself from Ishmael that were a grief to the mind of both his father and his mother; meaning that he was now wilfully living antagonistic towards them and their beliefs (see Gen. 26:34-35). Therefore as verse seventeen makes clear there is no repentance for the individual who likewise makes a wilful and decisive rejection of the Lord and His salvation for them (also see Hebrews 6:4-6).

Scripture Quotations 

The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.

Hebrews 12:3-11

³ For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. ⁴ You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. ⁵ And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; ⁶ For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.” ⁷ If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? ⁸ But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. ⁹ Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? ¹⁰ For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. ¹¹ Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

Commentary

Vs. 3 "For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls." 

The Lord Jesus Christ endured hostility from sinners initially seems a strange statement given that the Lord Jesus Christ was often called "a friend of sinners" by His enemies (Matt 11:18-19). Thus sinners here is not those sinners who seeing their own need for redemption come to Christ and are saved by Him (consider Matt 9:10-13; Luke 7:36-50; 18:9-14 etc.). No sinners here refers to those demonically charged individuals (whether Jews or Gentiles, consider John 8:37-47) who not only orchestrated His Crucifixion, but having brought it to fruition, rejoiced to see Jesus suffering and dying on the Cross in their presence (i.e the Pharisees and Sadducee's and the godless mocking mob whom they stirred up to have Pilate crucify Christ). Therefore as believers we must not become weary and discouraged in our souls when the wicked of this world likewise set their sights on us because we belong to Christ. For as Jesus said, ....‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. John 15:20-21

Therefore when faced with such things let us continue on with Christ doing the good that God would have us do and not become discouraged, just as Nehemiah did when he too was faced with the hostility of sinners and their schemes when he began rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem (consider then Gal. 6:9; 2 Thess. 3:13; 1 Peter 4:12-19). 

Vs. 4 "You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin."

Verse three singularly dealt with the hostility and opposition from sinners that we will face in this world, while verses four to eleven will deal with the greater dilemma in each and every believers life, and that is our ongoing struggles with sin. For that is the primary battlefield for every believer, our human flesh and it's inclinations towards sin. That said our struggles with sin should not be the cause of our discouragement, rather we should remember that though at times we may be overwhelmed by our own weaknesses in this battle, we will never have to resist to bloodshed in our striving against sin (consider 1 Cor. 10:13). For we have been crucified with Christ so that the body of sin might be done away with (Rom 6:6), and thus we are being transformed into the glorious image of Christ by God's Spirit who is renewing us day by day, so then let us not give up when we falter (1 John 2:1-2) but let each one of us encourage each other, and assist one another as need arises (consider Gal. 6:1-2). 

Vs. 5-7 ⁵ And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; ⁶ For whom the Lord loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.” ⁷ If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten?

Therefore we should not be surprised when God's correction comes to us to lead us out of it. For that is what you would expect from any sound parent (Prov. 19:18), and that is what God our Father does in seeking to remove those attitudes and actions that are not becoming of Him and His Son being in our persons and lives. Therefore rather than getting discouraged when we are rebuked by Him (as Cain was, see Gen. 4:6-7), we should seek Him and confess our sin and wrongs too Him; then having received His grace, mercy and forgiveness (Heb 4:14-16) seek to be what He is working out in us to be. For as the Scripture say's, "If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten?" Therefore child of God don't turn from God when you are rebuked by Him, rather turn to Him in obedience and faith so that you may be healed by Him (consider 1 Samuel 12:15; Hosea 10:12; Rev 3:19; antithesis Isaiah 1:5-9; Hosea 7:11-16; Zephaniah 3:1-2) 

Vs. 8 "But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons." 

It is most appropriate then that only the true children of God are chastened by Him. Notice too that there is none past or present or even future who have not, and will not be chastened by Him, for discipline is not only part and parcel of sound parenting but also of growing up into maturity.

Vs. 9-10 "Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? ¹⁰ For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. 

It thus naturally follows that if we honor and obey our own mortal fathers, how much more should we readily be in subjection to our heavenly Father, who is the here described as the Father of spirits, that is He is the One who holds the breath of every living creature in His hands. Therefore we are all to be in subjection to Him and live for as Ezekiel God's prophet exhorted the then rebellious nation Israel, being in subjection to God our Father brings life, while rebellion against Him only brings ones own ruin and death (consider Ezekiel 18:30-32; 33:10-11). 

Vs. 11 "Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it."

Obviously being chastened by the Lord is not a pleasant thing, just as enduring corporal discipline as a child from ones own father is not pleasant. Nevertheless both have the very positive and fruitful effect of producing the peaceful fruit of righteousness in those who have been trained by it. In other words God's chastening of us makes our lives not only more righteous, but also more peaceful. Now the antithesis of that would be to only produce spoiled and wild children as the Proverb warns, "spare the rod and spoil the child" (see Prov. 13:24; 22:15; 23:13-14; 29:15), and God is not in the business of raising selfish and self serving spoiled children who do not listen to Him, nor heed His Word.

Scripture Quotations

The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Hebrews 12:1-2

¹ Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, ² looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Commentary

Vs. 1 "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us"

Therefore since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses who ran the race of faith before us, who overcame this world by their faith so we are being exhorted to overcome (consider 1 John 5:4). Therefore using the metaphor of a giant Colosseum whose seats are filled with the faithful saints and martyrs who have past before us, the Word of God now encourages us all to lay aside every weight and the sin which easily ensnares us. Here weight means anything which keeps us from being conformed to the image of Christ, and thus experiencing all of Christ's liberty and life which He has given us to be. For all such things though not necessarily morally wrong are not beneficial to us (or anyone else) when we cling to them, for then they just become burdening weights holding us down and keeping us back from running our own race of faith with endurance, and thus doing, pursuing, and being all that the Lord Jesus Christ has remade us and released us to be. Similarly is the sin which we indulged in and were in bondage too before we came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. For though by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ we have died to sin, and thus been released from it's power (see Rom 6:2). We can after we have been released from it, take it up again, and thus bring ourselves back into the bondage of it, which will only bring it's own spiritual troubles and problems (1 John 5:18), which again will only keep us from doing and enjoying all that Jesus Christ has called us and remade us to do, enjoy, and be (consider John 8:31-36; 10:10; Rom 12:1-2; Col. 1:13).

Vs. 2 "looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Now though the testimonies and lives of those who have past before us are inspiring, there is only One the Word of God directs us to focus on. The Lord Jesus Christ the author and finisher of our faith. For in eternity past God the Father chose Christ His Son to be the bearer of our redemption and bring salvation to us. And so in the fullness of time Jesus took on human flesh and entered into the human experience to do just that. And so Jesus was born a baby, grew from childhood to a teenager to an adult, doing and experiencing all that we do and experience as human beings, yet He did so without sin, because there was no sin within Him, and so Jesus lived and walked amongst us for One Supreme purpose to do the Will of Father and fulfill the Word of God by suffering and dying on the Cross for our eternal redemption from sin and death. Therefore we are all commanded to look to Jesus not only for our eternal redemption and salvation from sin an death (John 3:15-16), but also as our Role Model for this life that we now live with Him. For it is Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith. Author here means He is the originator, the One through whom God's life, Holy Spirit life, came and comes to everyone who believes in Him, and thus Jesus is the One through whom God's Will and Word for us all has been declared and manifested to the glory of God the Father (also see Heb. 2:10). Jesus then is the the One who has not only paved the way for us all to enter into a holy and everlasting redeemed relationship with God the Father (John 14:6), but He is the One who has finished it. That is finished our faith in the sense of both completing and perfecting it, and thus us all who believe in Him (see Heb. 10:14). For that is what Jesus said on the Cross just before He died, "It is Finished!" That is all that God will ever require of us for salvation has already been accomplished, completed, and perfected by the Son of Man's Perfect death on the Cross. Therefore Jesus for the joy that was set before Him, (joy in what He was about to accomplish, not joy in what He was about to go through) endured the cross, despised the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. The incredible suffering and public shame of the cross, of suffering a Crucifixion death which was a form of capital punishment thought reserved for enemies and the worst of criminals (i.e. violators of the Law) has become by the Will of God the means by which God has purchased our eternal redemption! The Lord Jesus Christ's Substitutionary death on the Cross for us all then had to happen there if God was going to be Just in redeeming us from all of our sins against Him. "For there is no one from Adam and Eve forward who has not sinned against God (Rom 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10), and as the Word of God declares "the soul that sins shall die" Ezekiel 18:4  Therefore Jesus as the Sinless Son of Man went forward in faith to suffer and die in our place so that He could accomplish our eternal redemption, and having accomplished it, Jesus three days later rose from the dead revealing His resurrected Person to His disciples and having done so and having instructed them on what they must now do, Jesus Ascended back to God the Father, to sit down at the right hand of the throne of God. Therefore we must all look to Jesus as we walk through this new life that He has given us when we are faced with trials and tribulations, when we are faced with our own personal failures, and when we are faced with overwhelming opposition which can never defeat us but can become the means by which God likewise accomplishes His Will for us if we go through it correctly. Therefore we too for the joy that is set before us, let us all run our own races of faith, with conviction, with love, with joy, with endurance, with patience, always remembering that whatever we pass through in this life is just another means by which God is likewise perfecting us (consider Heb. 2:10-13). 

Scriptural Quotations
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.

Hebrews 11:30–40

³⁰ By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days. ³¹ By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace. ³² And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: ³³ who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, ³⁴ quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. ³⁵ Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. ³⁶ Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. ³⁷ They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented—³⁸ of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. ³⁹ And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, ⁴⁰ God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.

Commentary

Vs. 30 "By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days."

When Joshua led the armies (i.e. the people) of God into Canaan, crossing the Jordan by a supernatural act of God who parted the waters for them, their first objective was Jericho. Now Jericho was an ancient city, heavily fortified and walled, which not only stood as a gateway into Canaan, but it would be the first test of the wilderness generation of Israelite's faith whom God said He would bring into the promised land. And so having entered Canaan by a Supernatural work of God, (Joshua 3:14-17) and having the Angel of the Lord appear to them to lead them (Joshua 5:13-15), the Israelite's were commanded by God to marched around Jericho once a day for six days. Now on the seventh day they were to march around it seven times upon which the priests would blow the trumpets and then God would cause the walls of Jericho to fall before the Israelite's, leaving the city open and defenseless against their assault on it (Joshua 6:1-6). Now these Israelite's faith wasn't proven when the walls of Jericho fell before them and they took it, their faith was proven when by faith they went to Jericho and marched around it according to commandment of God (see Joshua 6:1-27). For unlike their fathers who perished in the wilderness; who did not believe God would give them the land; these Israelite's entered the land of Canaan at the commandment of God. And so believing God they went forward in faith and did just as God commanded them to do which assured their own successes. For as long as they did so, God gave the Canaanites into their hand. A principal that should not be overlooked by us when we likewise engage in spiritual warfare; which likewise is never won by natural means, strengths, resources and abilities; (2 Cor 10:3-4) but only by the power and grace of God, which is released in us and through us when we likewise believe and obey God. 

Vs. 31 "By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace."

Now Rahab demonstrated her faith when she having heard how the Israelite's had entered the land, and how God had destroyed the Egyptians in the Red Sea knew that if she had any hope of surviving the upcoming assault, she would have to make peace with Him. And so when the spies sent by Joshua entered Jericho and they came to her house (for her house was on the wall) she did not turn them in to the leaders in Jericho, instead Rahab fearing God not only received them into her house but she also hid them from those seeking them, helping them escape the city after they spied it out. And so Rahab did not perish with those of Jericho who did not believe that God could bring His people to victory against them, she believed what had been told her about God's mighty works in Egypt, and what He had done to the Egyptians, and so again she feared God and put here faith not in the walls and leaders of Jericho, but with God, whose mercies she trusted in when she received the spies to herself. Rahab the harlot then stands as an example of Godly faith because she feared the judgment of God, and thus she received the salvation of God for herself when she received the spies. Now the same choice must be made by us all, to either repent and believe in the Gospel, and thus escape the coming judgment of God, or to carry on in unbelief to ones own eternal destruction and ruin. For God's wrath against this ungodly world is looming near. For just as He has done to Sodom and Gomorrah so He will do again to this ungodly world (2 Peter 3:3-13). And so the choice is ours to likewise fear and thus repent and believe in the Gospel, by which we receive the Lord Jesus Christ who is the only protection that anyone has from God's everlasting wrath and Judgment, or to carry on as they did then and be consumed just as they were when God visits this world for judgment (consider Luke 17:26-30). 

Vs. 32 "And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets"

Moving from Rahab onto the generations of the Judges and beyond, the Word of God now puts a rhetorical question to us, to bring to mind some of the most prominent men of it; Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David and Samuel and the prophets, ³³ who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, ³⁴ quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. 

Now without going into all of the details of their mighty exploits which they accomplished through faith, the Word of God gives us a broad summery of just what was done through them because they believed God, and thus they stepped out in faith, trusting God to do through them what they could not have achieved themselves. And that is an important point to remember, these are not "self-made" men who relied on their own strengths, skills, abilities or resources. These are people whom God chose to fulfill His purposes for His people, who when called by Him stepped out in faith to obey His Will for them, and thus God did through them what they could not have done themselves, so that God would be praised and glorified, not man (consider 1 Cor 1:26-31).
Gideon then when called by the Angel of the Lord was not at that time a "mighty man of valor" when the Angel of the Lord called him so, for Gideon like all of the Israelite's had been reduced too threshing their grain and whatever else they could harvest in secret places, so as to keep it from being confiscated by the Midianites who then bore the rule over them (see Judges 6:11-12). Therefore when the Angel of the Lord declared Gideon to be such, He was declaring just what Gideon would be if he obeyed Him and followed Him (Judges 6:14-16). Therefore with just three hundred men Gideon went on to accomplish a great victory for Israel because he believed God therefore he obeyed God's will for him (Judges 7). 
Barack though a leader in the nation of Israel, before he stepped out in faith was a self doubting man, and so Deborah the prophetess was the individual God was judging the people of Israel through, until she by the commandment of the Lord encouraged him to take up his leadership and go forward in faith and lead the armies of Israel into battle (Judges 4:4-7). Therefore when Barack overcame his own self doubts, and whatever fears he had, and he stepped out in faith, the people not only followed him, but God gave Israel the victory through him because he obeyed Him. Therefore Barack is listed in annals of faith as an example of Godly faith because he overcame his own doubts, fears, and whatever else was holding him back, and he went forward in faith to the glory of God our Father. Therefore when God gave the nation of Israel deliverance through him both Barack and Deborah rejoice in the Lord singing a song praising Him for what He had just done for His people, which begins with them both singing, 
“When leaders lead in Israel,
When the people
willingly offer themselves,
 Bless the LORD!" Judges 5:1-2

Leadership then must always and continually resist any and all inclinations towards self doubts and inaction, because it is never what we can confidently do, it is always what God wants to do and demonstrate through us, so as to inspire and encourage others to follow Him in faith.

Now Samson though mighty in physical strength and stature still had his own shortfalls and weaknesses. For Samson was a man who had a strong sense of justice, which often got him into all kinds of predicaments. And yet in spite of Samson's personal weaknesses, God accomplished great victories and triumphs through Samson, using those same personal traits that often seemed like liabilities to others to move Samson to take the fight to the Philistines, and bring about great deliverance's for His people in their time of need. The greatest which occurs when Samson having been betrayed by the woman he loved loses all his strength when she cuts his hair, and then he is turned over to the Philistines by her. And so with his strength gone, his eyes having been gouged out, Samson is reduced to being a chained broken man in a Philistine prison, only to be taken out to be fully humiliated before the Philistine lords in the temple of their god where Samson is now forced to "perform" before them. Now it is in that lowest moment of Samson's life that he in faith cries out to the Lord to enable him one last time to take vengeance on the Philistines for his eyes (Judges 16:25-30). And so it was that Samson killed more Philistines in his death then he ever did in his life. And thus Samson though he lived almost all of his life by his own strength, yet it is in his death that he turns to the Lord to enable him to do for him what he could no longer do for himself. Therefore Samson is listed in annals of faith, as a man of faith, because like those before him he believed God.

Jephthah a man of valor was a man of illegitimate birth, who though being the first born son of his father when he became of age was driven from his household and his territory by his own brothers and the leaders of it. And so for a season Jephthah is reduced to leading raiding parties outside of the territories of Israel. Now it would be this man whom God would chose to lead His people onto victory over the Ammonites when they turned away from their idols and returned to Him (Judges 11-12). Jephthah then would be brought back by the same men who once despised him and had driven him away to be the leader of them, whom God would place His Spirit upon so as to lead His people and bring about their deliverance through Himself. Jephthah then would go from being an "outlaw" to being a man of God who kept his word to God when God's people were not keeping theirs. And so Jephthah is listed here with some of the greatest men of that era. 

David and Samuel and the prophets are all listed together and rightly so, for both David and Samuel were prophets and throughout their lives they all exemplified faith in God even when God's people were not. Now David whose beginnings were small and insignificant in the eyes of everyone except God would by his faith in God and by the Sovereign will of God, become king of Israel. And so David would become the man through whom God would not only lead His people to bring about Israel's greatest victories, but because David was a man after God's own heart God through David would establish His own Son's Throne and Kingdom forever. And so David is listed here in annuls of faith because David not only kept his faith deeply abiding in God even when as yet God's will for him could not be seen coming to fruition, but David even when established by God still looked too and depended deeply on God throughout his tenure and life. Therefore David is listed amongst the men and woman of faith , because he was man of faith.  

Vs. 33 "who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,"

Having cited some of the great and prominent figures from the Old Testament era, the Word of God now recalls how by faith how they overcame whatever overwhelming obstacles and opposition that they faced in following God. First mentioned is they subdued kingdoms, for that was God's plan for His people when He brought them out of the land of Egypt and into Canaan was for them to subdue the kingdoms of the people there, so that God's people could establish His in the land. And so from Moses to David and beyond God worked mightily through His people in accomplishing this when they believed and obeyed Him. Now in this Joshua stands out because he initially conquered Canaan and vanquished the nations there when God brought them into Canaan and the Angel of the Lord went before them. Only when Israel turned from the Lord God and turned to the idols and Godless practices of the people around them did God give them into the hands of their enemies. Thus there can be no Spiritual victories for any of God's people, if we do not believe and obey Christ and thus separate ourselves from Godless beliefs and practices of the wicked (consider 2 Cor 6:14-7:1; Eph. 5:1-7; Rev. 18:1-4; also 1 Tim 5:22).
Next mentioned is that God's people throughout the ages by faith worked righteousness. In this the Kings of Judah like Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joash, Hezekiah and Josiah stand out for they all turned God's people back from their idols to the Lord God of their fathers when the people had gone astray; thus preserving them and the nation when they did so. That said the working of righteousness is by no means limited to them, but is brought to fruition by everyone who by faith stands up for it! Now by faith they also obtained promises, that is by believing the promises of God they obtained to the promises of God, for that is the necessary link between hearing God's promises and having God's promises come to fruition in ones life, believing Him. By faith they also Stopped the mouths of lions which is clearly seen with Daniel who escape certain death because of his faith in God. Now in this Daniel did not put God to the test to see if God would deliver him from them; no Daniel was delivered over to lions by the schemes of wicked men because of his faithfulness towards God.
Therefore God saved him, because Daniel kept his faith in God even if this meant his facing certain death for doing so, something which marked Daniels life (see Daniel 6:10-23). Now the Apostle Paul also mentions of metaphorically being delivered out of the mouth of the lion, again indicating escaping certain death by the hand of God (2 Tim 4:17).

Vs. 34 "quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens."

By faith Daniels three compatriots who were exiles with him in Babylon quenched the violence of fire when they too were delivered over to it by the schemes of wicked men, and so God saved them because of their faith in and faithfulness towards Him (see Daniel 3:8-25). Escaped the edge of the sword is likely a reference to surviving in battle as the context indicates, and so it was by faith that they survived. Similarity by faith out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. king Asa is a wonderful example of this when faced with a million man army of invading Ethiopians, yet by faith king Asa overcame even them (see 2 Chron. 14:9-14).

Vs. 35  "Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection."

Excluding all of the miracles done by Jesus in the N.T. two woman in the days of Elijah and Elisha also received their dead raised to life again, the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:17-24) and the Shunammite woman (2 Kings 4:8-37). These two woman then exemplified true faith when God's people's faith was in short supply. Jesus even cites the widow of Zarephath, a region of Sidon, and Naaman the Syrian commander, as both being people of faith to His home town of Nazareth which only brought out their fierce and murderous ire (see Luke 4:23-30). Now throughout the history of God's people, in the Old Covenant era, and now in the New, suffering for ones faith in God, even to martyrdom, has been and will always be apart of following God (consider Rev. 6:9-11; 20:4-5).

Vs. 36  "Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment." 

And so faith is not just the means by which God does great and mighty deeds in and through our persons and lives. But by faith God's people also endured the hostility of this ungodly world. Therefore the Lord Jesus Christ in being made like all His brethren, also had endure the trial of mockings and scourgings, of chains and imprisonment, like John the Baptist and all the Old Testament prophets and believers who down through the ages likewise suffered for their faith in God. 

Vs. 37-40 ³⁷ They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented—³⁸ of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. ³⁹ And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, ⁴⁰ God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.

The reality of having faith in God means not only having to face trials and tribulations in this brief life, but also having to endure the violent hostility and rejection of this world. That is the reality for us all when we choose to follow Christ. Too varying degrees and in varying ways every believer will enter into the sufferings of God's people, yet by faith overcame. Therefore the Word of God in recalling these things does not pull any punches, but declares plainly some of severe sufferings of God's people.  And so they were stoned, for stones in the Middle east are everywhere, and are easily picked up and wielded by violent and angry mobs seeking to execute God's people. The Apostle Paul was stoned once for his faith in Christ but miraculously survived (see Acts 14:5, 19-20; 2 Cor 11:22-28, vs. 24); "they were sawn in two," a most gruesome act though not recorded in the Bible, yet being recalled in the Bible means that this was not just a one off occurrence; "were tempted" likely meaning tempted to recant their faith in order to save themselves from certain suffering or death; "were slain with the sword," which is indicating execution by lawful authorities for their faith in God. "They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented—
³⁸ of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth." 

Despised, rejected, harassed, hounded, hunted, believers have always been driven out of their homes and away from their families (and sometimes even by their families, consider Matt 10:34-39). And so we should not think it a strange things when such things befall us (1 Peter 4:12-19) for believers down through the ages have always been forced into exile, isolation, hardships, poverty and all forms of destitution, troubles and miseries for their faith in and faithfulness towards God. Now even though these didn't have the promise of God's salvation fully revealed and brought to fruition for them, they still clung to Him in love, therefore the Word of God says that they obtained a good testimony; that is a good testimony in the eyes of God for their faithfulness too God. Therefore the Word of God also says that this godless world was not worthy of them. For standing up for God's Righteousness and Truth, and living by it, always means having to endure hostility from this world (2 Tim 3:12-17). Therefore God has provided something better for them than the fleeting treasures and passing pleasures of sin that mark the lives and pursuits of those living for this world, since they should not be made perfect (perfect In Christ) apart from us (consider Rev 6:9-11). Therefore each and every believer should draw strong consolation from the sufferings of God's people who went before us, since just as God upheld and sustained all of them in love, hope, and joy to eternal life, so He will likewise do for us all who likewise believe in Him and hold fast to Him firm till the end (Heb. 3:6).


Scripture Quotations
The New King James Version. (1982). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.


Additional Resources Consulted 
Vs. 33, 35 MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.) (p. 2201). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.



Note: Draft Version

Hebrews 11:23–29

²³ By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s command. ²⁴ By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, ²⁵ choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, ²⁶ esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. ²⁷ By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. ²⁸ By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them. ²⁹ By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.

Commentary

Vs. 23 "By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s command."

Verses 23-29 begin to recall the faith of Moses, beginning with his parents who upon his birth and seeing that he was a beautiful child instead of fearing Pharaoh's command to kill all of the firstborn males in Israel, hid him three months before he was found by Pharaohs daughter who being enamored with the child then adopted him as her own son, Moses then would grow up as a privileged child in the house of Pharaoh trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians (see Exodus 2:1-10; Acts 7:22). 

Vs. 24-26 ²⁴ By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, ²⁵ choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, ²⁶ esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.

Now Moses when he became of age refused to be called Pharaoh's daughter, that is he turned his back on whatever power and privileges and treasures that were prepared for him in Egypt. And so instead of renouncing his Hebrew origins when he became of age, Moses renounced Pharaoh and Egypt, and chose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin (vs. 24-25), "esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward." vs. 26 

Moses then like those before him had his eyes fixed on the eternal which is how God always tests his people, and especially His chosen leaders, will you love Me and follow Me even if it costs you everything you have known, desired, or loved? Now when Moses chose to do so he entered into the great pedigree of faith of all those who down through ages likewise chose to love God and His people more than their own persons, ambitions, or even lives. Therefore when God called Moses from the burning bush and told him to go to Pharaoh and speak to him all that He would tell him to speak to him, Moses knew if he did so he would be removing any chances of ever being reconciled to Pharaoh and Egypt. Nonetheless Moses wanting to be with God's people, even from the time he had to flee from Egypt, until the time God told him to return 40 years later, knew that his returning to Egypt would now mean having to share in the reproaches of Christ, that is in following God he would now have too share in the many reproaches, threats, troubles, and hardships of God's people for doing so. 

Vs. 27 "By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible."

By faith then when God had fulfilled His Word and hardened Pharaohs heart after He had executed His judgments on Egypt by His plagues, Moses one last time appeared before Pharaoh who then threatened Moses with death if he ever came to see him again, and with that Moses emboldened by his faith in God told Pharaoh that he would never see his face again, meaning Moses would now lead the people of God out of Egypt regardless of Pharaoh's desire to keep them there in bondage. And with that God gave Moses the Passover ordinance which would bring with it His finial judgment on the land of Egypt, before God would lead them out of it forever (see Exodus 10:27-29, 11:1-10).

Vs. 28 "By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

By faith then Moses believing God kept the Passover feast and the sprinkling of blood (which would preserve the Israelite's) while the Lord executed all the first born of the Egyptians (Exodus 12:29-30). Blood then is the only covering for our sins, from Abel to Moses, to the fulfillment found in the Lord Jesus Christ, the blood of the Lamb of God is the only protection that anyone has from the finial judgment of God when He visits for punishment.

Vs. 29 "By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned."

When God brought the Israelite's out of Egypt; while the Egyptians were still burying their firstborn; He brought them by way of the wilderness to the Red Sea, placing before them a seemingly insurmountable obstacle. Now Pharaoh after the burial of their firstborn mustered all his people and went in hot pursuit of the Israelite's and was fast closing in on them. And so it was in that moment facing the Red Sea in front of them, and the enraged Egyptians behind them, that Moses being commanded by God raised his staff to heaven and the Red Sea parted, making a wide path for them to pass through it on dry land, a sight that had never been seen before, which could have paralyzed Moses and the 500,000 or so people he was leading with fear and awe. But Moses instead of hesitating moved forward in faith and hurriedly led the people all night through it too the other side. Now the Egyptians when they saw that the Israelite's pass safely through it also tried to do so, and when they had all entered it God commanded Moses to raise his rod again to heaven and He brought the massive walls of water down on them, drowning them all in the midst of it (see Exodus 14:1-31).
Moses then by believing God not only brought the people out of Egypt by the power and judgment of God but he also begin the journey which the Israelite's would take before entering the promised land which Joshua would do when Moses had fulfilled God's purposes for him. And so this legacy of faith is something that we are all invited to likewise enter into, which we do the moment we repent and believe in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, we not only then become children of God (John 1:12) but we also begin our own journeys of faith by which God works in us and through us and will take us as far as we let Him take us. The only question then is have you repented and believed and thus received the Lord Jesus Christ by faith and begun your own journey with Him? For remission of sins and everlasting life only comes to those who do so, therefore don't delay be reconciled to God today!

Scripture Quotations 
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.

Hebrews 11:17-22

¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, ¹⁸ of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” ¹⁹ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. ²⁰ By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. ²¹ By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. ²² By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones.

Commentary

Vs. 17-19 ¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, ¹⁸ of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” ¹⁹ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

The testing of Abraham's faith is one of the great triumphs in the Bible. Because God in choosing to test Abraham's faith in such a profoundly personal way not only revealed the depth of Abraham's faith; but also God revealed of Himself the height and depth and length and breadth of His own loving kindness and mercies because Abraham believed and obeyed His voice (see Gen. 22:1-19, vs. 12, 15-18). And so when Abraham heard God's command to sacrifice his beloved son, the son of God's promise, of whom God said to him "In Issac your seed shall be called" (vs 18.). Abraham obeyed God concluding that God was able to raise Isaac up, even from the dead, in order to keep His Word and promises spoken to him. Therefore Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his own son clearly foretells of God's willingness to sacrifice His own Son for us all, with the goal of raising Him from the dead, so that His blessing of eternal salvation could could to one and to all who believe in Him. 

Vs. 20 "By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come."

Issac takes his place in God's hall of fame because in putting Jacob before Esau he was putting the will of God before his own. That is though Esau was Jacobs firstborn and preferred son, and according to all social norms should succeed him, God had already chosen Jacob the second born, even from the womb, and had already told Issac that the elder child Esau would serve the younger Jacob, and thus through Jacob, God's promises spoken to Abraham and Isaac would come to fruition. And so even though Issac was initially deceived by Rebekah and Jacob when it came time for Isaac to bestow his blessing on his sons, Jacob let his best blessing rest and remain on Jacob trusting God's choice over his own. (gleaned from Believers Bible Commentary) 

Vs 21 "By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.

By faith then Jacob when he was dying accepted as his own the sons of Joseph, blessing them and placing Ephraim (the younger) before Manasseh (the elder), while saving his greatest blessing for Joseph the son through whom God had chosen to not only save Jacob and all his sons, but also to keep innumerable persons alive while He was preparing a place for them in the land of Egypt, to fulfill His Word and keep His promises alive and going forward to the generations yet to come. The finial act of Jacob then is very poignant for in seeing the future for all his sons, and seeing afar off the fulfillment of God's promises, Jacob's finial then act was to worship God while leaning on his staff.

Vs. 22 "By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones."

Joseph too then having seen the children of Israel become a great and mighty multitude in Egypt made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, for Joseph could see that the time for God's fulfillment of His Word to bring His people into the land of Canaan was soon at hand. And so Joseph gave instructions regarding his bones, because though Joseph was dying he did not want his finial resting place to be in Egypt, but with God's people in the Promised Land. How about you where's your finial home? Will it be with Christ in the Kingdom of heaven or will it end down here separated and aliened from the love and life of God, and thus end in eternal disaster and ruin? If your unsure then repent and believe in the Gospel and receive the Lord Jesus Christ while the Day of Salvation is near you, because God's Word fulfillment waits for no one, therefore be reconciled to God today!

Scripture Quotations 
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.

Hebrews 11:13-16

¹³ These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. ¹⁴ For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. ¹⁵ And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

Commentary

Vs. 13 "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth." 

The forerunners of our faith, the patriarchs, though not seeing the promises of God fulfilled in their own lifetimes all died in faith, that is they didn't just believe for a season and then fall away, rather having seen the promises of God afar off. Now for Abraham this would have been in the birth of Isaac through whom God would bring forth the promised nation and ultimately the Promised Savior (Gen 22:14), who would redeem not only Abraham, but also everyone who like Abraham believes God and puts their trust in Him. And so we see the same faith exemplified through Abel, Enoch, Noah, Sara and all who likewise believing the promises of God spoken to them afar off embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth (Psalm 39:12). 

Vs. 14 "For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland."

We the people of God have always been and will always be strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For the Promises of God are not about this life, about satisfying the earthly desires, ambitions, and greed of those whose hearts and eyes are fixed on the pleasures and "treasures" of this world (consider 1 John 2:15-17). Rather the Promises of God are always given with the King and His Kingdom, and thus God's eternal glory and His glorification of both Himself and His people through Him in it (Isaiah 44:23; 55:5; Matt 9:8, 15:21; John 11:4; 13:31-32; 14:13; 15:8; 17:4, 10; Acts 3:13; Rom 8:17, 30; 2 Thess. 1:10; 1 Peter 4:11, 14). Therefore though we all live down here in various places and in various states of being we don't have our homes down here, home for us is when we are finally at home with Christ (John 14:2-3).

Vs. 15 "And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return."

Now if they had wanted too, they could have returned to their countries of origin. But instead in choosing to follow God's Will for them they served all ties with their past lives. Now the same may also be required of us as we follow Jesus Christ, for in forsaking our lives down here, we just may have to leave behind all that we had previously known in order to do so. 

Vs. 16 "But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them." 

Every true believer is on a pilgrimage, a journey homeward that begins down here, but does not find its completion until we are at home with Christ up there in heaven. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called our God, for He has prepared a city for us all who down through ages forsook this world and it's fleeting values and embraced His and His Will for us (consider Heb 12:22-24; Rev. 3:11-13; Rev 21). 

Scripture Quotations
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.

Hebrews 11:8-12

⁸ By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. ⁹ By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; ¹⁰ for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. ¹¹ By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. ¹² Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.

Commentary
Vs. 8 "By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going."

From Noah, through whom God preserved a posterity of original humanity, we move to Abraham, a man through whom God presented the foundation of salvation. And so by faith Abraham obeyed God when God called Abraham to leave his family and friends and all that he had known and go to the place which God would show him. And so Abraham believing God went out from his place not knowing where He was going, but believing God he obeyed Him and God brought him to the land of Canaan with all that he had (Gen. 12:1-6). Then later after Lot departed from him, God promised Abraham that he and his descendants would have the entire land as an inheritance from Him forever (Genesis 13:14-17).

Vs. 9-10 "By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; ¹⁰ for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

And so it was that Abraham dwelt in the land of Canaan, (but not as the heir of it, or even as a resident of it). Instead Abraham dwelt in tents as if he were living in a foreign country. For Abraham did not adopt the idolatrous cultural practices, nor degenerate moral norms of the land (see Lev. 18, vs. 24-30). And so all the time that Abraham dwelt in the land of Canaan he dwelt as sojourner along with his sons Issac and Jacob who were also heirs of the same promises that God spoke to Abraham. For Abraham did not build himself a city to establish himself in the land as would've been the norm when he settled in Canaan, rather he was living in anticipation of the city which has everlasting foundations, whose builder and maker is God (vs. 10). Now for us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ this same principal is also at work in our hearts and lives. For though we live in whatever nations and places where we dwell, truly we do not have deep roots in them, for like Abraham, and all of God's people down through the ages, we truly are strangers and sojourners in this world and too this world (Psalm 39:12), as we await the city whose Builder and Maker is God (see Rev. 21:9-27).

Vs. 11 "By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised."

Now if Abraham's faith is exemplary, so too is Sara's, and not because she initially believed when the angel of the Lord Spoke to Abraham saying that he would have child in his old age, (for initially she laughed), rather because when that time came and she became aware that she was now pregnant in her old age, she did not seek to abandon or abort her child. Rather she believing God received strength from God to bring forth the promised child, even when she was well past age of child bearing, for she counted God faithful to His Word and to His Promises. 

Vs. 12 "Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore."

And so from Abraham a man the Scripture says was as good as dead, God brought forth decedents as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore, just as He promised He would do through Abraham (Genesis 13:16; 15:5; 22:15-18). Therefore both Abraham and Sara his wife are listed as being people of faith, not extraordinary faith, but genuine faith that does not need to have all of the answers in order to believe God and take Him at His Word. The question then of where we stand with God begs us all to answer honestly. For unless one repents and believes the Gospel one will not see the Kingdom of heaven. Now what is repentance it is essentially a change of mind, it is to see oneself as one truly is apart from Christ, and that is dead in ones own sins and transgressions, and thus alienated from the life of God that only comes to us all through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore it is to see ones own need for the Gospel, and thus seeing ones own need for salvation from one's own sins and death, to turn to God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ crucified for ones sins and transgressions, and then 3 days later risen from the dead for our justification to new and everlasting life (Rom 10:9-10, 13). Repentance then puts ones person and life into a eternal perspective in relation to God the Father and to Jesus Christ His Son. Now repentance does not save you, though when genuine it will cause you to rethink your persons current course of life, yet it does not save you, as if by ones own efforts salvation comes to them. No only faith in the Lord Jesus Christ saves us which is believing God, believing His Word spoken to us and thus receiving His salvation for ourselves, something which each of us individually must do, believe God's Word (John 3:16) and receive His Son into our own hearts and lives (John 1:12; Rev. 3:20). For when ones does God then sends His Spirit into us who then brings us to life and unites us with the Lord Jesus Christ who then transforms our persons and lives. First by the regeneration our hearts minds and souls which is essentially transforming our persons from the inside out by His Spirit which then effects every aspect of our person, bringing hope where hope was once dead, bring joy where once sadness reigned, bringing satisfaction where once emptiness and meaningless reigned, bringing Spirit life and empowerment to our mortal bodies where once lethargy and tiredness reigned, and thus bringing all of His life and love and all the fruits of His Spirit into us (Gal 5:22-23) by making His home in us which always plays itself out in our lives down here as we are being transformed from one glory to another, we are Christ's lights of not only the life and love and grace of God, but also of His dignity and beauty, which is only born in us and brought to life through us by the Spirit of God. 

Scriptural Quotations 
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.

Hebrews 11:4-7

⁴ By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. ⁵ By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. ⁶ But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. ⁷ By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

Preamble 

Having laid the ground work for defining our faith, the Word of God now looks back into history and recalls some of those key individuals who by living by faith pleased God. 

Commentary

Vs. 4 "By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks."

By faith then Abel offered a more excellent sacrifice than Cain when he offered the blood sacrifice of a sacrificial animal whose shed blood was accepted as an atonement for him. While Cain his brother only brought an offering of the fruits of the field (see Gen. 4:3-5). Thus Cain in bringing an offering of his own means defied God's everlasting principal that without the shedding of blood there is no remission (Heb 9:22). For no one can have reconciliation with God apart from sacrificial blood shed on their behalf, and specifically now the Lord Jesus Christ's sacrificial shed blood for us all by which one and all may have remission of their sins and everlasting life the moment they believe, and thus it is only through the precious blood of Christ that we can now freely approach God and know that we will be fully accepted by Him when we do so (Heb 4:14-16). And that is the lesson that Abel teaches us all by his offering. For no one approaches God by either their own merits or by their own means. For all who try to do so, as Cain tried to do, will only find their offerings and their persons being rejected by God when they try to do so. For we do not get to define for ourselves what we will do to approach God, or to have His approval. For the Sovereign God has already defined it for us all. And thus Abel living by faith choose to follow that which he knew would please God, while Cain choose to do as he pleased. Therefore through his offering "Abel obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks." Abel then in obeying the Will of God obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of this when He accepted Abel and his offering. And through his offering Abel still speaks to us all to seek approval with God by what God has defined for us all as justifying us, and thus making us accepted in His sight, and that is faith In the Lord Jesus Christ Crucified and Risen from the dead, and not seek His acceptance by devising and doing our own works and ways. For again all who try to do so will only find themselves being rejected by God when they do, just as Cain was. Now when Cain's offering was rejected by God, Cain went on to murder his brother Abel, a heinous crime which was born out of his own evil pride for being rejected by God when he tried to do so. And sadly that evil has played itself out down through the ages. For wherever people are accepted and justified by their faith, there are always those who wanting to be justified by their own works and ways becoming hostile towards us. Just as the Pharisees grew increasingly hostile towards the Lord Jesus Christ and His disciples when they rejected their man-made decrees, so with everyone who likewise lives by their own righteousness (and or what they decree for themselves as making themselves righteous in the sight of God) they too often become hostile towards anyone who finds peace with God through faith in Christ alone. For law and grace cannot peaceful cohabit, for those living under law will always be hostile towards the justification of anyone by the grace of God given to us all by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone (consider Gal. 4:21-31, vs. 29). And so Abel still speaks to us all who want too please God to seek God by what God has done to justify us, and not by what we think should justify us. 

Vs. 5 "By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God." 

Enoch is the next example of an individual who lived by faith. Enoch was such a Godly man in a generation of ungodly men and women that Enoch did not see death, for before his death Enoch was taken up to heaven by God because he pleased God (Gen. 5:21-24; Jude 14-15). Only Elijah was likewise taken by God in his generation, a generation in which apostasy from the true God was rampant. And such will be the last generation before the rapture of the church when the Lord Jesus Christ returns for those who believe in Him and who remained faithful to Him (2 Thess 2:1-12). Faith then is an encompassing disposition that affects the way one lives and thinks. 

Vs. 6 "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." 

Two things then that God requires of us all. First is believing that God is, for when one believes in God one opens the door to not only to ones own salvation (Isaiah 45:22), but also to His working all of the endless possibilities that He works on behalf of those who believe in Him (consider Luke 1:26-38, and Gabriel the angels Word to Marry, specifically vs. 37, which has a universal application for us all). Second then is too diligently seek God, which is foundational to not only finding God (consider Deut 4:29; 2 Chron. 15:4), but also to being rewarded by Him. Jesus once told a parable that emphasized our need to diligently seek God and not become discouraged in waiting for Him (see Luke 18:1-8). For it is a Scriptural fact that God is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him, from David to Daniel to Nehemiah, to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, diligently seeking God is the only way to be rewarded by Him (consider Lev. 26:39-45; Daniel 9:1-27; Nehemiah 1; Mark 1:35 etc.). 

Vs. 7 "By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith."

When Noah was warned by God of the upcoming flood, Noah being moved by Godly fear acted. And so he built an Ark according to commandment the Lord spoken to him by which he saved both himself and his whole household. Now if Noah did nothing then he would have been condemned with the godless and unbelieving world he was then living in. The same holds true for us all today who when we hear the Gospel preached to us, if we do nothing then we seal our own fates just as the unbelieving world did in the days of Noah (consider Luke 6:46-49). However if we like Noah act and move in faith, believing God's Word spoken to us through the Gospel, and we repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ we will not only be saved from the wrath to come (2 Peter 2:5), but we will become vessels through whom God will seek to save many others as well. For faith is never stagnate, it always produces good and Godly fruit, just as Noah did in obeying God in his generation, and thus Noah by doing so condemned the world and became the heir of righteousness which is according to faith. 

Scripture Quotations
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.